CEO of Wolt Uzbekistan Zafar Iskhakov dwelled on the current trends in e-commerce and noted that the market was developing at a high pace. He made this point while discussing the industry's dynamics at the "KEY TECH: AI in Retail and E-Commerce" conference, where he emphasized that "the e-commerce market is developing in line with dynamic digital principles."
According to him, in recent years, Uzbekistan has created important elements of digital infrastructure: starting business has been simplified, the role of online platforms is increasing, and the number of self-employed individuals is growing. Iskhakov noted that the industry is moving forward, and it is now important for regulation to develop at the same pace.
"Uzbekistan has already made great strides in digitalization. The next step is to build new processes directly in a digital format. This will allow businesses to start working online more quickly and easily," he emphasized.
Iskhakov noted that more and more small entrepreneurs are switching to e-commerce, and the government is working to simplify procedures. He emphasized that it is important to maintain the accessibility of these tools. "E-commerce is one of the most convenient routes into the formal market. Businesses are willing to operate openly when processes are clear and appropriate for their scale."
"It's important for the government and stakeholders to continue explaining to entrepreneurs that operating in the 'white zone' is always more reliable, stable, and long-term than outside it. There's also a social factor: when entrepreneurs see that part of the market remains in the gray zone, they fear losing their competitive advantage and continue to operate informally, since moving into the white zone entails increased costs that those remaining in the gray zone don't have," he noted.
Speaking about interactions between the government and the market, Wolt's CEO in Uzbekistan noted that the dialogue is becoming more meaningful, and companies are interested in participating in early-stage discussions of initiatives. He also emphasized the importance of moving toward regular data analysis when developing regulatory decisions. He believes that monitoring online commerce trends, the number of self-employed individuals, and the share of formal transactions will allow for a more accurate understanding of the measures supporting industry growth. In conclusion, he noted that increasing the digital maturity of entrepreneurs and the availability of convenient digital tools continue to play a key role in the development of the country's e-commerce.
